travel

Thoughts on Thanksgiving

November 23, 2023 By Jess McGlothlin

Jess McGlothlin Media. Maluti Mountains and Bokong River in Lesotho, overlooking from the Makhangoa Community Camp run by African Waters.

It’s Thanksgiving today here in the States, and I’m using the rare time at home base to give the year a little review. It’s been a whirlwind (and with more travel coming in up December, it’s not over yet!). The overwhelming theme as I dig through images, notes, and video clips from his year is overwhelming gratitude, which I suppose fits for a Thanksgiving note. Sure, I’m grateful for the images made, stories penned, and the fish caught along the way, but most of all I’m grateful for the people I’ve been able to meet and work alongside in these awesome places. The people who make it all happen.

There’s a certain breed of people out there who are happiest out in the far corners of the world, doing their thing. Vibrant souls who tend to be remarkably steady, balanced with a good dose of wild.

Perhaps it’s a result of being so close to the edge of the world, but the paradoxical sensation of so much peace—and feeling so alive—is impossible to ignore.

And it’s impossible to ignore the people who understand it.

So thanks to everyone who I’ve been able to work with this year. Thanks for the conversations around campfires, boat launches, dozens of airports, lodge lounges, and more than one gravel bank in the near middle of nowhere. Thanks for the nights we tried to solve the world’s problems over too much local booze and—just for a moment—it seems like we might know a thing or two. Keep on doing what you’re doing. Keep on living on the edges, and reveling those quiet moments.

So thanks to the crew in the trenches: the guides, cooks, lodge teams, airport desk staff, customs agents, and everyone else who makes it all work. There’s no way I can fit all your pictures in this post, though I sure wish I could. I’m grateful for you.

Stats Breakdown: The Past 11 Weeks on the Road

November 3, 2023 By Jess McGlothlin

The past months have been a sprint. Some of it you’ve seen here on social media, some of it you haven’t. It’s been a mix of jobs—some fishing, some not fishing—airports, camera gear, fly rods, medical kits, and endless words jotted out onto various documents. Emails and editors and clients and customs agents.

Here’s a brief look at a some of the good, the bad, and the ugly:

– 1x Someone breaking into my quarters while I was sleeping (Of note, this happened on a non-fishing job. Which I’m taking as a sign that I should do more fishing work, and less of the other.)

– 1x Me breaking into a rental house when we were locked out

– 9 Dives into the medical kit

– 6 Countries

– 7 Client shoots

– 5 Personal best fish

– 7 New species

– 42 Airplane flight legs

– 13 Helicopter flight legs

– 21 Boat transfer legs

– 2 Bags lost by airlines

– 200 Dollars won in a self-tourniquet contest in a hotel bar

– 2 Fast-tracks through customs

– 13 Published stories (more coming soon)

– Way too many bad coffees in airports

There’s more travel yet to come in 2023, and 2024 is shaping up to be a pretty good adventure as well. Thank you to all the clients, guides, editors, and everyone who makes this work possible—you make it all happen!

Image: Transfers, jungle style, with a pass through Oromomo Village. Last week in Bolivia with Tsimane Lodge.

Quick Assignment—and a Fishing Tournament—in Baja California Sur

July 19, 2023 By Jess McGlothlin

Just spent a few quick days down in Baja California Sur fishing in the MAJA El Grande Tournament and covering a few assignments for various outlets. Stories coming soon—watch my social for updates!—but in the meantime, here’s a few snapshots of a very (too!) quick job south of the border.

Ready to get back to Mexico and spend more time…

When Good Things Go Wrong: Salt Water Sportsman Feature

June 1, 2023 By Jess McGlothlin

This was one of the more fun writing assignments to come across my desk so far in 2023. When the editors of Salt Water Sportsman sent me an email saying, “We want you to write about when fishing trips go wrong,” a long list of former trips sprang to mind. It was an enlightening trip down memory lane to recount past trips-gone-wrong, and to really sit and put pen to paper about why we travel to chase fish around the world. (Which, when you think about it, is a fairly strange thing to do.)

The print issue just dropped yesterday, but if you’re not a subscriber, read the abridged digital version here.

Fly Fishing for Yellowfish in Lesotho With African Waters

March 5, 2023 By Jess McGlothlin

The end of January and early February was spent exploring the Johannesburg area with good friends, then I flew to Pietermaritzburg and met up with the African Waters team. From there, it was a 10-hour drive across the border into Lesotho, crossing over mountain passes and winding our way along dirt roads past the massive Katse Dam (Africa’s second largest double-curvature arch dam) and on to Makhangoa Community Camp. The small camp rests in the Maluti Mountains, not far from the local village of Makhangoa.

Maluti Mountains and Bokong River in Lesotho, overlooking from the Makhangoa Community Camp run by African Waters.

Guide Greg and I arrived as dusk was falling, on a cool, foggy, rainy night that challenged my perceptions of African weather. We met up with the rest of the guide team—Kyle, Riley, and Chris were awesome—and settled in for a “get to know you” before the work started.

It’s still one of my favorite parts of this job; arriving into a new camp or lodge and getting the lay of the land and the crew at hand. It’s never boring.

You’ll read more about the week in upcoming magazine articles, but suffice to say, yellowfish are unlike any species I’d fished for anywhere else around the world. South Africans call them “African bonefish,” and the same fits. Constantly on the move, picky dry fly eaters, and almost comical in appearance, yellowfish have quickly pressed near the top of my “fish I like fishing for” list, and I’m already very keen to get back to Africa for more chances to chase the fish.

Yellowfish caught while fly fishing the Bokong River in Lesotho, Africa.

My time in Lesotho was epic, and I can’t wait to share the stories. From long walks along the nightly Bokong River, to galloping young two-year old horses along dirt paths, to sitting outside in the dark at night with beer and cigarettes solving life’s problems, it felt so strangely like home.

Thanks to the African Waters team for having me; I’m looking forward to he next adventures! In the meantime, stay tuned here and on Instagram for updates as these Lesotho stories and images hit the streets.

David ties on new flies while fly fishing for Yellowfish on the Bokong in Lesotho, Africa, with African Waters at Makhangoa Community Camp.

Exploring Hawks Cay Resort

October 24, 2022 By Jess McGlothlin

Duck Cay Marina in the Florida Keys near Hawks Cay Resort.

Was able to make a quick trip down to the Florida Keys a few weeks ago to visit Hawks Cay Resort.

Yellow fin snapper caught near Hawks Cay Resort, on Duck Cay in the Florida Keys.

Resorts aren’t my typical fare, but I was pleased to see Hawks Cay lived up to the promise of good fishing and a quick break. It was a quick few days with plenty of good food, a bit of snapper, and a quick taste of the Florida Keys. I’ll likely be back to visit, and hopefully slide into a bit of backcountry fishing as well. Hawks Cay is a great family-friend destination (most of the places I visit aren’t), but also has some hideaways for adults seeking to avoid noisy kids (the rum bar is top notch).

Gear Care and Maintenance 101

August 7, 2022 By Jess McGlothlin

Outdoor photography, by its very definition, takes place, well… outdoors.

And the outdoors are dusty. And muddy. Sandy. Gritty. Windy. Wet. Damp. Humid. Icy. Smoldering.

None of which present “ideal” operating conditions for camera equipment.

Not an electronics-friendly environment. (Photo courtesy of Capt. Emir “Gordy” Martin.)

One of the most common questions I get is how I manage gear in the field, keeping it functional and operating at peak capacity when conditions are tough. The care and keeping of camera gear varies with every shoot as the conditions are different, but here’s a look at my basic daily cleaning routine in the field, as well as upkeep maintenance I do upon returning from a shoot.

Camera Bodies / Lenses

Especially on saltwater or very dusty shoots, cameras and lenses are wiped down with a damp washcloth each evening. Lenses and filters are cleaned and swabbed dry, and if needed a bulb blower is used to remove dirt and dust from crevices. Camera bags are dried if they got wet throughout the day.

Every night I upload image files from my memories cards into Lightroom, and back up in triplicate before clearing / reformatting the memory card. Batteries are charged up if needed. And it’s all left to air-dry a bit before being packed and prepared for the next morning.

Drone

The drone presents a love / hate relationship. Logging flight plans and following international import laws means there is no time to slack. Before leaving for any shoot, I always perform a check flight at home, then do another upon arriving at the shoot location to ensure nothing was damaged in travel. My drone spends a fair bit of time crossing the equator, which seems to mess with the compass settings. That’s a frequent reset / reconfigure routine.

Remember, know your equipment. Know its temperament and common issues… it helps troubleshoot things like this in the field.

On a recent international shoot, my drone was roughed up a bit by customs and I was getting odd error messages in the field, after a clean test-flight at the lodge. I’ve spent the past week stripping all the software off, reinstalling, and reformatting the whole thing. That’s also involved a lot of test flights, diagnostics, and all those things that take a lot of time but are a part of the package.

In the field, the drone gets a minor version of the DSLR’s nightly routine. Wipe down, inspect for dual damage, clean lens and filters, ensure batteries and controller are charged for the next day. Especially in saltwater climates, sunscreen, high humidity, and saltwater don’t make for a terribly LiPo (lithium polymer) battery-friendly environment.

Speaking of those LiPo batteries. The batteries are notoriously volatile, and don’t do well in very hot environments. (Like a 100+F flats boat.) Keep them in the shade when possible… keep them cool. Rotate through your stock; don’t always use the same battery and keep the others as backup. I have mine labeled numerically, and note in my flight log which battery was used, and to what percentage it was drained to. It’s a good way to ensure rotation and also track potential problems.

Underwater photograph of a Belize permit caught fly fishing. — Even in cloudy water conditions, a clear, well-performing underwater housing is an asset in your quiver.

Underwater Housing

I use an AquaTech underwater housing, and have been largely quite happy with it. It’s durable, allows good adjustments within reason, and has held up to storms, sharks, and other shit. It also requires a bit of love.

The housing is rinsed meticulously after each day in the field. If I’m some place with a shower, it comes in the shower with me for a good rinse, and all the buttons are pressed to ensure fresh water gets in every little nook and cranny. Very occasionally, I’ll use a small amount of silicone grease on the controls to keep them smooth and happy. Even less occasionally, the o-rings in the housing and dome port get a very light coating of grease as well.

The dome is cleaned and polished every night inside and out. Each morning as I load the camera in, a good sprinkling of silica gel packets to help manage any moisture that might get inside.

Computer, Hard Drives, and Other Gear

Travel’s not easy on any gear. Even though they log less time on the water and in the field, cameras and hard drives still take a beating. I keep my laptop in a padded neoprene sleeve, which is a very basic effort to prevent sliding injuries in various airport security lines around the world. It helps.

I’ve also run a strip of gaffer tape along the spine of my laptop to help keep out dust and other debris.

Overall, just use common sense with your electronics. Don’t handle them with excessively salty or dirty hands. Wipe them off every now and then. Watch condensation if you’re going from air conditioning into a humid, hot environment often. Cushion it when you can.

Gear is meant to be used. It’s going to get dinged up and maybe even broken. But with a little extra maintenance, we can tip the odds a little more in our favor that it’ll perform when needed in the field. Besides, there’s something cathartic about wiping off the hard-earned dust and dirt from a shoot gone well.

Take care of your gear, and it’ll take care of you.